The University of Mary Washington

Mary Wash has its good and bad, just like any other school out there. The student body isn't all that diverse, even though the faculty try to say it is. It is predominately white. And when I say predominately, I mean all the minorities could fit in a room. They are open-minded though, so they accommodate for differences, but when you look out into the crowd, usually you end up being the only minority in a class. Also, there are very few guys at the school. Depending on your class size, a guy may end up being the only male in the class. This is good or bad depending on your tastes. The campus is 60% girls, and 40% guys... and out of that 40... 20% is gay, 10% are douchebags, 5% are taken. So the last 5% are guys worth dating. Good luck.

When making friends, Mary Wash is a good place. It's a small school, and the people are pretty chill, so if you're open to meeting people, you'll make friends. There are a ton of clubs and sports... and you can even make up a club or sport if they don't have what you want. We even have a Wii Bowling League here for goodness' sake. Anything is possible if you want it. The campus has a really close-knit feel, and we're all really trusting. You can leave your stuff sitting out and know it'll be there when you get back. We're really honest when it comes to that kind of thing.

And as for faculty, they're all pretty cool. Most of the time, if you have a professor you hate, they're still a nice person, they just suck at teaching. No exceptionally hot professors that I know about, but to each their own. They're all knowledgeable and helpful... but sometimes you do get that professor that seems like they just don't care about you. Usually, they have tenure, so it's not even like you can complain about them in professor reviews. But aside from them, I'm sure you'll be happy with your professor.

The campus is beautiful, and as for social life, it's pretty quiet on campus. We are not a party school, but I'm sure if you really want to party, you can find one somewhere. Most likely you drive to Richmond or DC (both an hour away) for a lot of stuff. We do however have a really great shopping district you can get to on the bus for free... and it's even better if you have a car.

The food is okay. Better than some, suckier than others. The more you eat it, the more you'll hate it. They try to add variety, but even that gets old. So I recommend eating off campus sometimes, just so you won't get sick of the food as quickly. To put it shortly, Mary Wash is an okay school. Not perfect, but really... what is? If you're looking for fun, we have it somewhere. If you're looking for friends, you'll definitely find some. It's all dependent on what you want out of the school. If you try to like it, you'll get a lot out of your college experience and you'll be happy you came here. Even if it's a starting point for a transfer, you'll still be glad. I know I'm proud to go here.

2nd Year Female -- Class 2013

Campus Aesthetics: A, Collaboration/Competitive: C-

Ok, I'm going to do my best to offer any advice that will help you make your mind up about attending UMW. By the way, I transferred here from a community college, so this review will primarily benefit transfers.

This school IS hard to get into. I read a lot of comments from people that seem to tag the school with an "easy" admissions label -- don't believe it. The school has roughly 5,000 people, and you do need to be a very good student to be admitted. However, that does have it's problems;

For the most part, the student body is chock full of money. There are a lot of wealthy people here, and it shows in the overall stuck up attitude of the student body.

The "party scene" was never really that important to me, so I won't comment about it. With that said, there is an underground Frat here on campus, and they throw parties frequently around Fredericksburg.

The town: what do you expect? Fredericksburg has everything you could ever want in a town -- a beautiful "old town" area, and Central Park which contains just about every store ever invented. A major plus to the shopping center is that it is secluded from the campus, so the traffic is for the most part, isolated.

The campus is beautiful, however, do NOT let this mislead you. When I was on the college hunt, the beauty of this campus alone reeled me in. Do not make the same mistake I did! Make your decision based on the academics and involvement, not a few nice looking brick buildings.

Dorm life: Can't say that I like it. Internet has frequent problems and since the buildings are a hundred years old, there is a lot of wear and tear. Also, the parking is absolutely terrible. As a transfer student, I heard about 6 different answers to the question of "can I bring a car?". Freshmen cannot have cars, or overnight guests for the first semester.

The bureocracy here is unbelievably horrible; not to say that it isn't at every school, but the fact that 6 different people have 6 different answers to a general question like the car situation just shows how disorganized the administration is. Cops will ticket your car if it is left unnattended for an hour.

Last but not least, applying to transfers: For lack of a better word, I got fucked on my transferrable classes. I brought 26 credits in, and only 6 credits count towards my gen-ed requirements. Keep in mind that the classes that I took WERE all standard gen-ed classes. The University is extremely strict on transferring credits; they claim "academic reputation", but I can't help but think that there are financial motives involved.

I do not know the reputation of UMW. Apparently, it has a good one among the mid-Atlantic region. It better though, because the Gen-Ed requirements of this school are more intimidating then any other school. This is a liberal arts university, and don't expect to cut corners; 2 years of foreign language is required!I hope this helped.

1st Year Male -- Class 2009

Collaboration/Competitive: A+, Individual Value: D+

It's ok, you will be challenged. There is not much to do around fburg, although it is a pretty town. If you're looking for a fun/party college experience go elsewhere.

2nd Year Female -- Class 2008

Scholastic Success: A+, Social Life: C-